[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 228 (Friday, November 27, 1998)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 65568-65571]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-31608]
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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
47 CFR Part 90
[WT Docket No. 98-182, RM-9222; FCC 98-251]
1998 Biennial Regulatory Review--Private Land Mobile Radio
Services
AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: This document proposes several amendments to the Commission's
Rules as part of its 1998 biennial review of regulations. Additionally,
this document addresses certain rules regarding extended implementation
periods for public safety licensees, and an ex parte filing in the
Commission's Refarming Proceeding, PR Docket No. 92-235, regarding
trunking on frequencies in the bands between 150 and 512 MHz. This
document proposes various rule changes applicable to the Private Land
Mobile Radio Services that will either simplify and upgrade part 90
and/or be deregulatory in nature. The proposed rules will reduce the
regulatory burden on licensees, and will promote more efficient and
flexible use of the private land mobile radio frequency spectrum.
DATES: Comments are due January 4, 1999, and reply comments are due
January 22, 1999.
ADDRESSES: Federal Communications Commission, Office of the Secretary,
Room 222, Washington, D.C. 20554.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gene Thomson, Policy and Rules Branch,
Public Safety and Private Wireless Division, Wireless
Telecommunications Bureau, (202) 418-0680.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's Notice
of Proposed Rule Making, (``Notice''), WT Docket No. 98-182, FCC 98-
251, adopted September 30, 1998, and released October 20, 1998. The
full text of this document is available for inspection and copying
during normal business hours in the FCC Reference Center, Room 246,
1919 M Street N.W. Washington, D.C. The complete text may be purchased
from the Commission's copy contractor, ITS, Inc., 1231 20th St. N.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20036, telephone (202) 857-3800. The complete (but
unofficial) text is also available on the Commission's Internet site at
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Wireless/Notices/1998/index.html
under the file name ``fcc98251.txt'' in ASCII text and ``fcc98251.wp''
in Word Perfect format.
Synopsis of the Notice of Proposed Rule Making
1. The Commission has released a Notice of Proposed Rule Making
that proposes several amendments to the part 90 Private Land Mobile
Radio Services rules. This action is part of our 1998 biennial review
of regulations pursuant to Section 11 of the Communications Act of
1934, as amended. Section 11 requires us to review all our regulations
applicable to providers of telecommunications service and determine
whether any rule is no longer in the public interest as a result of
meaningful economic competition between providers of telecommunications
service, and whether such regulations should be deleted or modified.
However, we believe it is appropriate to review all of our regulations
relating to administering wireless services, not just those pertaining
to providers of a telecommunications service, to determine which
regulations can be streamlined or eliminated. A comprehensive review of
part 90 of the Commission's Rules determined which regulations were
either not in the public interest or were obsolete, overly complex,
required editorial change, or redundant in nature.
2. The document proposes:
a. to amend 47 CFR 90.35(c)(60) to indicate that, in addition to
permitting the use of the listed frequencies at any location for low
power, non-voice operation, voice operation will be permitted when the
frequencies are used specifically for cargo handling purposes.
b. to amend 47 CFR 90.149(a) to provide that licenses for stations
authorized under part 90 will be issued for a term not to exceed ten
years from the date of initial issuance or renewal.
c. to amend 47 CFR 90.155 to permit any public safety applicant to
seek extended implementation authorization pursuant to the provisions
of 47 CFR 90.629.
d. to amend 47 CFR 90.175(i)(14), to require that applicants for
any of the fifteen 220 MHz public safety channels set forth in 47 CFR
90.719(c) and 90.720, submit their applications to a public safety
frequency coordinator for frequency coordination prior to submission of
the applications to the Commission.
e. to amend 47 CFR 90.179 to provide that a radio facility
authorized to a public safety licensee may be shared with a Federal
government entity on a cost-shared, non-profit basis.
3. Additionally, the document requests comments on: (1) An ex parte
filing in the Commission's Refarming Proceeding, PR Docket No. 92-235,
regarding trunking on frequencies in the bands between 150 and 512 MHz;
(2) the Land Mobile Communications Council's suggestion that
decentralized trunking systems be designated as such on the licensees'
authorizations, and whether two separate authorizations are needed for
``hybrid'' trunked systems; (3) whether the licensing requirement can
be eliminated for certain part 90 frequencies and; (4) the concept of
Adjacent Channel Couples Power as proposed by Motorola, Inc. as an
alternative approach to emission masks for limiting out-of-band
emissions. The document proposes these rule changes applicable to the
Private Land Mobile Radio Services that will either simplify and
upgrade part 90 and/or be deregulatory in nature. The document also
invites commenters to submit information on the costs and benefits of
the rules at issue in this proceeding and of the Commissions proposed
modifications. The document does not address the part 90 Commercial
Radio Services.
Administrative Matters
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
4. As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act (``RFA''), the
Commission has prepared this present Initial Regulatory Flexibility
Analysis (``IRFA'') of the possible significant economic impact on
small entities by the policies and rules proposed in this Notice of
Proposed Rule Making (``Notice''). Written public comments are
requested on this IRFA. Comments must be identified as responses to the
IRFA and must be filed by the deadlines for comments on this Notice.
The Commission will send a copy of the Notice, including this IRFA, to
the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration.
See 5 U.S.C. 603(a).
A. Need For, and Objectives Of, the Proposed Rules
5. Although not required by statute, we initiate this proceeding in
conjunction with the Commission's 1998 biennial regulatory under
Section 11 of the Communications Act of 1934, 47 U.S.C. 161. Section 11
requires us to
[[Page 65569]]
review all our regulations applicable to providers of
telecommunications service and determine whether any rule is no longer
in the public interest as a result of meaningful economic competition
between providers of telecommunications service, and whether such
regulations should be deleted or modified. As part of our biennial
review of regulations required under Section 11, however, we believe it
is appropriate to review all of our regulations relating to
administering wireless services, not just those pertaining to providers
of a telecommunications service, to determine which regulations can be
streamlined or eliminated. Therefore, to streamline part 90 of the
rules and reduce regulatory requirements, the Commission proposes to
amend part 90 of its rules to: (1) Modify the language of specific
rules to eliminate the confusions that applicants have had, which in
many cases, has caused additional effort on the part of the applicant
and resultant delays in application processing; (2) extend all five-
year license terms to ten years, thus reducing the licensee's burden
and costs for license renewal; (3) for stations with an eight-month
construction period, increase the time in which a station must be
placed in operation from eight to twelve months; (4) provide extended
implementation periods for public safety licensees under identical
parameters regardless of the operating frequency band and; (5) permit
public safety licensees with excess communications capacity to provide
communications service to the Federal Government on a non-profit, cost-
shared basis. We believe these changes will encourage growth of land
mobile systems and enhance telecommunications offerings for consumers,
producers and new entrants.
B. Legal Basis
6. Authority for issuance of this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking is
contained in Sections 4(i) and 303(r) of the Communications Act of
1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 154(i) and 303(r).
C. Description and Estimate of the Number of Small Entities to Which
the Proposed Rules Will Apply
7. Under the RFA, small entities may include small organizations,
small businesses, and small governmental jurisdictions. 5 U.S.C.
601(6). The RFA, 5 U.S.C. 601(3), generally defines the term ``small
business'' as having the same meaning as ``small business concern''
under the Small Business Act, 15 U.S.C. 632. A small business concern
is one which: (1) Is independently owned and operated; (2) is not
dominant in its field of operation; and (3) satisfies any additional
criteria established by the Small Business Administration (``SBA'').
Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 601(3), the statutory definition of a small
business applies ``unless an agency after consultation with the Office
of Advocacy of the SBA and after opportunity for public comment,
establishes one or more definitions of such term which are appropriate
to the activities of the agency and publishes such definition(s) in the
Federal Register.''
8. Depending upon individual circumstances, the various proposed
rules will apply to only certain businesses and local government
entities that operate radio systems for their own internal use in the
Private Land Mobile Radio (PLMR) services. PLMR systems serve an
essential role in a vast range of industrial, business, land
transportation, and public safety activities. These radios are used by
companies of all sizes operating in all U.S. business categories.
Because of the vast array of PLMR users, the Commission has not
developed nor would it be possible to develop a definition of small
entities specifically applicable to PLMR users. For the purpose of
determining whether a licensee is a small business as defined by the
SBA, each licensee would need to be evaluated within its own business
area.
9. We note that the Commission's 1994 Annual Report indicates that
at the end of fiscal year 1994, there were approximately 292,000
stations and 5.4 million transmitters operating just in the 800 and 900
MHz and 24 GHz bands. Further, because any entity engaged in a business
activity is eligible to hold a PLMR license, these proposed rules could
potentially impact every small business in the U.S.
10. The RFA also includes small governmental entities as a part of
the regulatory flexibility analysis. The definition of a small
governmental entity is one with a population of less than 50,000. There
are 85,006 governmental entities in the nation. This number includes
such entities as states, counties, cities, utility districts, and
school districts. There are no figures available on what portion of
this number has populations of fewer than 50,000. However, this number
includes 38,978 counties, cities, and towns, and of those, 37,566, or
96 percent, have populations of fewer than 50,000. The Census Bureau
estimates that this ratio is approximately accurate for all
governmental entities. Thus, of the 85,006 governmental entities, we
estimate that 96 percent, or 81,600 are small entities that may be
affected by our proposed rules. Therefore in this IRFA, we seek comment
on the number of small businesses which could be impacted by the
proposed rule changes.
D. Description of Projected Reporting, Recordkeeping and Other
Compliance Requirements
11. No new reporting, recordkeeping, or other compliance
requirements would be imposed on applicants or licensees as a result of
the actions proposed in this rulemaking proceeding.
E. Steps Taken to Minimize Significant Economic Impact on Small
Entities, and Significant Alternatives Considered
12. Many of our proposed rules will result in economic benefits to
small business and local government entities. We believe that there
would be several public interest benefits gained by extending the
license term for all part 90 licensees to ten years. First, there would
be an economic benefit to new applicants in that their licensing costs
would effectively be lowered. Under the Commission's current license
fee structure, a part 90 licensee with a ten-year authorization has an
economic advantage over a licensee with a five-year license in that it
enjoys a longer license term at less cost. Second, under our proposal,
existing five-year licenses would receive a ten-year renewal period
upon expiration of the five-year license, thus halving the licensee's
long-term renewal costs.
13. Regarding the proposal to increase the time in which a station
must be placed in operation from eight to twelve months, we envision
that this change in the regulatory treatment of PLMRS stations would
reduce the necessity for a licensee to request an extension of the time
to construct, and thus would eliminate the costs necessary to make such
a request.
14. The distinction between systems operating above and below 800
MHz is about to change because recently adopted rules will lead to the
availability of new narrowband equipment and increase the possibility
of using trunked equipment. This will, in turn, lead to larger, more
complex public safety systems. Our proposal to permit ``slow growth''
extended implementation periods under the same parameters for systems
operating below and above 800 MHz will enable faster system planning
and implementation, resulting in reduced costs to licensees.
15. Permitting a public safety licensee to share its station with a
Federal government entity, is on a non-profit, cost-sharing basis would
be beneficial to
[[Page 65570]]
both parties. It would lower the operational costs of the public safety
system in that the public safety licensee would obtain cost-sharing
benefits from the Federal agency, and it would enable the Federal
agency to obtain needed communications at a lower cost than if the
Federal agency had to implement its own communications system.
16. We seek comments on these tentative conclusions.
F. Federal Rules That May Duplicate, Overlap, or Conflict With the
Proposed Rules
17. None.
Ordering Clauses
18. It is ordered that, pursuant to Sections 4(i), 4(j), 303(r),
and 403 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C.
154(i), 154(j), 303(r) and 403, notice is hereby given of proposed
amendments to part 90 of the Commission's Rules, 47 CFR part 90, in
accordance with the proposals, discussions, and statement of issues in
this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.
19. It is further ordered that the Petition for Rulemaking
submitted by the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials-
International, Inc. is granted to the extent indicated in the Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking.
20. It is further ordered that the Commission's Office of Public
Affairs, Reference Operations Division, shall send a copy of this
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, including the Initial Regulatory
Flexibility Analysis to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small
Business Administration.
List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 90
Communications equipment, Radio.
Federal Communications Commission.
Magalie Roman Salas,
Secretary.
Rule Changes
For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Federal
Communications Commission proposes to amend 47 CFR part 90 as follows:
PART 90--PRIVATE LAND MOBILE RADIO SERVICES
1. The authority citation for part 90 continues to read as follows:
Authority: Sections 4, 303, and 332, 48 Stat. 1066, 1082, as
amended: 47 U.S.C. 154, 303, and 332, unless otherwise noted.
2. Section 90.1 is amended by revising paragraph (b) to read as
follows:
Sec. 90. 1 Basis and purpose.
* * * * *
(b) Purpose. This part states the conditions under which radio
communications systems may be licensed and used in the Public Safety
Pool, Industrial/Land Transportation Pool, and the Radiolocation Radio
Service. These rules do not govern radio systems employed by agencies
of the Federal Government.
3. Section 90.35 is amended by revising paragraph (c)(60)(i) to
read as follows:
Sec. 90.35 Industrial/Business Pool.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
(60) (i) Frequencies subject to this limitation may be used for
voice or non-voice communications when utilized for cargo handling from
a dock, or a cargo handling facility, to a vessel alongside. Any number
of the frequencies may be authorized to one licensee for the purpose.
Mobile relay stations may be temporarily installed at or in the
vicinity of a dock or cargo handling facility and used when a vessel is
alongside the dock or cargo handling facility.
* * * * *
4. Section 90.149 is amended by revising paragraph (a) to read as
follows:
Sec. 90. 149 License term.
(a) Licenses for stations authorized under this part will be issued
for a term not to exceed ten (10) years from the date of the original
issuance, modification, or renewal.
* * * * *
5. Section 90.155 is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 90.155 Time in which station must be placed in operation.
(a) All stations authorized under this part, except as provided in
Secs. 90.629, 90.665, and 90.685, must be placed in operation within
twelve (12) months from the date of grant or the authorization cancels
automatically and must be returned to the Commission.
(b) A local government entity in the Public Safety Pool, applying
for any frequency in this part, may also seek extended implementation
authorization pursuant to Sec. 90.629.
(c) For purposes of this section, a base station is not considered
to be placed in operation unless at least one associated mobile station
is also placed in operation. See also Secs. 90.633(d) and 90.631(f).
(d) Multilateration LMS systems authorized in accordance with
Sec. 90.353 must be constructed and placed in operation within twelve
(12) months from the date of grant or the authorization cancels
automatically and must be returned to the Commission. MTA-licensed
multilateration LMS systems will be considered constructed and placed
in operation if such systems construct a sufficient number of base
stations that utilize multilateration technology (see paragraph (e) of
this section) to provide multilateration location service to a
substantial portion of at least one BTA in the MTA.
(e) A multilateration LMS station will be considered constructed
and placed in operation if it is built in accordance with its
authorized parameters and is regularly interacting with one or more
other stations to provide location service, using multilateration
technology, to one or more mobile units. Specifically, LMS
multilateration stations will only be considered constructed and placed
in operation if they are part of a system that can interrogate a
mobile, receive the response at 3 or more sites, compute the location
from the time of arrival of the responses and transmit the location
either back to the mobile or to a subscriber's fixed site.
(f) For purposes of this section, a station licensed to provide
commercial mobile radio service is not considered to have commenced
service unless it provides service to at least one unaffiliated party.
(g) Application for extension of time to commence service may be
made on FCC Form 600. Extensions of time must be filed prior to the
expiration of the construction period. Extensions will be granted only
if the licensee shows that the failure to commence service is due to
causes beyond its control. No extensions will be granted for delays
caused by lack of financing, lack of site availability, for the
assignment or transfer of control of an authorization, or for failure
to timely order equipment. If the licensee orders equipment within 90
days of the license grant, a presumption of due diligence is created.
(h) An application for modification of an authorization (under
construction) at the existing location does not extend the initial
construction period. If additional time to commence service is
required, a request for such additional time must be submitted on FCC
Form 600, either separately or in conjunction with the submission of
the FCC Form 600 requesting modification.
Sec. 90.167 [Removed]
6. Section 90.167 is removed.
7. Section 90.175 is amended by revising paragraph (i)(14) to read
as follows:
[[Page 65571]]
Sec. 90.175 Frequency coordination requirements.
* * * * *
(i) * * *
(14) Except for applications for the frequencies set forth in
Secs. 90.719(c) and 90.720, applications for frequencies in the 220-222
MHz band.
* * * * *
8. Section 90.177 is amended by revising the second sentence of
paragraph (d)(2) to read as follows:
Sec. 90.177 Protection of certain radio receiving locations.
* * * * *
(d) * * *
(2) * * * Prospective applicants should communicate with: Chief,
Compliance and Information Bureau, Federal Communications Commission,
Washington, D.C. 20554.
* * * * *
9. Section 90.179 is amended by adding paragraph (h) to read as
follows:
Sec. 90.179 Shared use of radio stations.
* * * * *
(h) Licensees authorized to operate radio systems on Public Safety
Pool frequencies designated in Sec. 90.20 may share their facilities
with Federal Government entities on a non-profit, cost-shared basis.
Such a sharing arrangement is subject to the provisions of paragraphs
(b), (d), and (e) of this section.
10. Section 90.187 is amended by adding paragraph (d) to read as
follows:
Sec. 90.187 Trunking in the bands between 150 and 512 MHz.
* * * * *
(d) The maximum number of frequency pairs that may be assigned at
any one time for the operation of a trunked radio station (class of
station YG or YW) is ten.
11. Section 90.421 is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 90.421 Operation of mobile station units not under the control of
the licensee.
Mobile stations, as defined in Sec. 90.7 include vehicular-mounted
and hand-held units. Such units may be operated by persons other than
the licensee, as provided for below, when necessary for the licensee to
meet its requirements in connection with the activities for which it is
licensed. If the number of such units, together with units operated by
the licensee, exceeds the number of mobile units authorized to the
licensee, license modification is required. The licensee is responsible
for taking necessary precautions to prevent unauthorized operation of
such units not under its control.
(a) Public Safety Pool. (1) Mobile units licensed in the Public
Safety Pool may be installed in any vehicle which in an emergency would
require cooperation and coordination with the licensee, and in any
vehicle used in the performance, under contract, of official activities
of the licensee. This provision does not permit the installation of
radio units in non-emergency vehicles that are not performing
governmental functions under contract but with which the licensee might
wish to communicate.
(2) Mobile units licensed under Sec. 90.20(a)(2)(iii) may be
installed in a vehicle or be hand-carried for use by any person with
whom cooperation or coordinations is required for medical services
activities.
(b) Industrial/Business Pool. Mobile units licensed in the
Industrial/Business Pool may be installed in vehicles of persons
furnishing under contract to the licensee and for the duration of the
contract, a facility or service directly related to the activities of
the licensee.
(c) In addition to the above, frequencies assigned to licensees in
the Private Land Mobile Radio Services may be installed in the
facilities of those who assist the licensee in emergencies and with
whom the licensee must communicate in situations involving imminent
safety to life or property.
12. Section 90.629 is amended by revising paragraphs (a)(1) and
(a)(2) and adding paragraph (f) to read as follows:
Sec. 90.629 Extended implementation period.
* * * * *
(a) * * *
(1) The proposed system will require longer than twelve (12) months
to construct and place in operation because of its purpose, size, or
complexity; or
(2) The proposed system is to be part of a coordinated or
integrated wide-area system which will require more than twelve (12)
months to plan, approve, fund, purchase, construct, and place in
operation; or
* * * * *
(f) Pursuant to Sec. 90.155(b), the provisions of this section
shall apply to local government entities applying for any frequency in
the Public Safety Pool.
[FR Doc. 98-31608 Filed 11-25-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P
